The Dundee United women’s team have got off to a flying start in their first season by completing a league and cup double.
And head coach Gavin Beith is hoping that he has now established a core of young players who will help take the club all the way to the top of the Scottish game.
United complete their season at the GA Arena next weekend, having already bagged the SWFL2 League Cup and the SWFL2 East League title.
But Beith, a player and coach development officer with the SFA in his day job, knows the challenge will get tougher year on year.
“We managed to get the league wrapped up with a game to spare,” he said. “We’ve probably known for a wee while but it was great to get it won.
“It’s our first season and we’ve won the league and cup so we couldn’t really have asked for much more.
“We had to put a team together from scratch and it obviously takes a bit of time to find your feet. But I was pleasantly surprised by how quickly we managed to gel and develop.
“There’s a mixture of 15, 16 and 17-year-olds and girls in their late 20s and early 30s. It’s a wide age range but they’ve all got on well.
“It’s been really fulfilling for me personally to see them flourish.”
Next year United will be in the third tier so, if all goes to plan, the earliest they can get to the top flight is 2019.
“It will obviously get harder,” Beith said.
“All the players will be free agents again so it’s dog eat dog, but we’re hopeful we’ll be able to keep the core of this squad together.
“We’ve got Megan Robb has been selected for Scotland under-17s and there are other youngsters who could get to that level. I think there’s a group of six or seven who could be the basis of a Premier league squad.”
Beith is enthused about the future prospects of his team and the women’s game in Scotland as a whole.
He said: “The level of interest has taken me by surprise. Sometimes we’ve had over 150 people watching our games.
“There are obviously friends and family who come along but so too do Dundee United fans. We’ve had great support from the club.
“There’s a buzz around the women’s game just now. It’s one of the fastest growing sports and there are some strong clubs in this area, and obviously the women qualifying for the European Championships is fantastic as well.”
